Insectoid (Race)
Not to be confused with Insectoids, the enemy type. Insectoids are a monster race option in Barony, introduced in the Legends and Pariahs DLC alongside three other monster races. It enables the player to use an alternative form of mana in Energy, allowing them to use a widened variety of food options to fuel their spells, or to just keep a more detailed eye on their hunger. Description Insectoids are characterized by their alternative to mana, that being Energy (EN), which is tied directly to the player’s current level of hunger. When the player feeds, their hunger becomes placated and any missing Energy is restored. To compliment this system, Insectoids can also dine on any edible food item, regardless if it is cursed or has a poor quality associated with it. Unlike mana and other alternatives such as the Automaton’s Heat system, Energy naturally drains over time alongside hunger. This, alongside the limited cap of 50 points of Energy for any insectoid, makes large-scale spellcasting virtually impossible without a disproportionate amount of food management to replenish their Energy. On top of not gaining any beneficial increase to mana regeneration as casting skill increases, this makes any caster classes such as Wizard a very daunting challenge for Insectoid players. To somewhat compensate for a natural aversion to magic spells, Insecoids begin their games with three innate spells. Flutter enables Insectoids to fly over gaps, Dash thrusts the player in the direction they are moving and Spray Acid to round out the spell set. These spells enable Insectoids to have short-span Levitation, making it the second race to be able to do so, next to Vampires. Thus, poor level layouts that would otherwise restrict the player from entering the Gnomish Mines are circumvented, as well as other difficult areas to traverse such as the Underworld or the Mystic Library are far more accessible. Given the interactions between certain items and mana restoration, the Insectoid has some interesting behavior when consuming “sweet liquids",'' ''which includes potions such as Bottles of Booze, Bottles of Fruit Juice, and Potions of Mana Restoration. Consuming any of these will result in an extra portion of Energy being restored. Social Standings Compared to other races, Insectoids have a very odd curve to how many allies they can accrue through the dungeon, being able to ally with other Insectoids, Scorpions and Scarabs. This means traveling through the Sand Labyrinth is far less of a hassle in the normal levels, but also punishes players who do not enable friendly fire by excluding them from so much experience. The large variety of affiliate characters also allows for several areas of the dungeon to provide some potential party members for the player, notably in the Sand Labyrinth as well as the Caves and potentially the Citadel with Scarabs and Greater Insectoids wandering the latter two locations. Since Skeletons are a monster race, they are targeted by both Humans and Shopkeepers, requiring a fight or a quick escape if they see the player. Category:Insectoid Category:Races